Hebron

Hebron's civic fathers climbed to the stone roof of city hall at midday yesterday and hoisted the Palestinian colors for the first time. There was scattered perfunctory applause, then the mayor and his entourage scurried back downstairs. The sober ceremony symbolized the grudging acceptance by this city's 120,000 Palestinians of an agreement that perpetuates the presence of Israeli soldiers and 450 militant Jewish settlers in their midst. This compromise, under which Israeli troops withdraw from 85 percent of the city but remain downtown to guard the settlers, was the breakthrough that allowed Israeli and PLO negotiators to close their historic deal to extend Palestinian self-rule in the occupied West Bank.

If Vaughn Hebron is on his way back to the doghouse, somebody'd better widen the door. A lot of big men in shoulder pads will be stopping by to say hello. The rookie running back was melancholy yesterday, struggling to keep his chin up. So Seth Joyner went over to Hebron's locker, stuck his hand under the kid's jaw and gave it quick, gentle lift. "Don't let it get you down," the veteran told the youngster. Hebron was explaining his two fumbles, the ones that turned two of his three pass receptions into big opportunities for the Miami Dolphins.

I wish Benjy - that's what we called Baruch Goldstein - had spoken about the Arab-Israeli conflict when we were in the sixth grade at the Yeshiva of Flatbush in 1967 and 1968. If we had, and if he had brought up the possibility of his crazy act in Hebron, we could have discussed it rationally, the way we discussed many other things. But he seemed mostly interested in science, not the Mideast. Whatever opinions he had, he expressed them very strongly. His goal was to win a Nobel Prize in science or medicine.

Yona Rochlin pages through the thick Hebrew volume, caressing the history of her beloved Hebron. She pauses at a black-and-white photograph of a man with spectacles and a long white beard, her grandfather's grandfather, the renowned Elijah Mani, posing in the turban and embroidered robe of an honored rabbi. After generations of peaceful coexistence, Rochlin's family left Hebron in 1929, just before anti-Jewish hatred erupted into Arab riots that left 67 Jews dead. Now she and a growing corps of the city's Jewish descendants are renewing their links with Hebron.

It was sheer coincidence that the evening chosen to see Schindler's List at the local movie house coincided with the appalling news of the massacre in the Hebron mosque. But the power of Steven Spielberg's film about the horrors of the Nazi Holocaust lent added weight to the tragedy of the shootings on the West Bank. As you watched the coldblooded commandant of the film's forced-labor camp in occupied Poland use innocent Jewish prisoners for pre-breakfast target practice from the balcony of his villa, the mind turned inevitably to Baruch Goldstein, the Brooklyn-born physician who unloaded three magazines of bullets from his assault rifle into innocent Muslims at prayer last Friday, killing about 40 of them.

HEBRON, West Bank - Israeli security forces swiftly evicted dozens of Jewish settlers from an illegally occupied building in this volatile West Bank city on Wednesday, ending a weeklong standoff that had threatened to spill over into broader violence. The raid caught the settlers off guard. Only a day earlier, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had moved to block the eviction order. Settler supporters in Netanyahu's hard-line government condemned the surprise raid, a key political ally threatened to quit the coalition, and settler leaders vowed retaliation.

A triumphant Yasir Arafat was greeted by 60,000 whistling, screaming Palestinians yesterday as he hailed their takeover of 80 percent of Hebron's streets and vowed that it would eventually lead to Palestinian statehood. "We will continue until Jerusalem!" the 67-year-old Palestinian president shouted from the top floor of the former Israeli military headquarters in Hebron. The building was turned over to Arab security forces three days ago, after Arafat and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu negotiated an Israeli withdrawal from most of Hebron.

Samieh Moutasib, a 27-year-old shopkeeper, lives in a nice house shoehorned into a hillside overlooking downtown Hebron, but getting there requires the agility of a goat. Apologizing to visitors he has invited to his home, Moutasib cuts through a schoolyard and scrambles up a steep dirt path. He steps carefully across a narrow ravine bridged by the door of a chicken coop and edges sideways along a narrow ridge hugging the hillside. Then, he climbs a homemade ladder that has been built into the cliff leading up to his backyard.

Jim Spisak of Pittsburgh and Alice Kamunya of Kingston, N.Y., claimed first place in the men's and women's races Saturday in the Rothman Institute 8K. Spisak covered the course, which started on the Ben Franklin Parkway near the Art Museum and continued along the Schuylkill, in 23 minutes, 41 seconds. Kamunya ran the 4.97 miles in 26:21. Kathryn Martin of Long Island broke the 8K national record for women between the ages of 60 and 64 with a time of 32:20. USA Track and Field will have to certify the record.

Strath Haven appears to accept that it won't have to perpetuate the winning tradition of past Panthers' teams. After losses of 51-29 to Mt. Hebron and 72-29 to defending state champion Downingtown in the Strath Haven Tournament this past weekend, Strath Haven doesn't appear overly concerned. Sure, beating teams of that caliber would have been nice, but the Panthers - a young team that lost all five starters of a season ago - seem to know their capabilities right now - and know how much more they need to improve if they plan to claim an eighth straight Central League title.

Jim Spisak of Pittsburgh and Alice Kamunya of Kingston, N.Y., claimed first place in the men's and women's races Saturday in the Rothman Institute 8K. Spisak covered the course, which started on the Ben Franklin Parkway near the Art Museum and continued along the Schuylkill, in 23 minutes, 41 seconds. Kamunya ran the 4.97 miles in 26:21. Kathryn Martin of Long Island broke the 8K national record for women between the ages of 60 and 64 with a time of 32:20. USA Track and Field will have to certify the record.

Hebron is a flash point of tension between Palestinians and Jewish settlers, and the city's streets are rubble-strewn relics of strife and of shops closed by a straitened economy. Parts of Hebron are probably frightening places to be at night, and schoolchildren darting into the sidewalkless streets gave me palpitations. "God forbid we should hit one of these kids," I thought. "We won't make it out of here alive. " My driver for the day, an Israeli Arab named Alexander, said he couldn't leave his car alone in Hebron for fear that it would be stoned.

HEBRON, West Bank - Israeli security forces swiftly evicted dozens of Jewish settlers from an illegally occupied building in this volatile West Bank city on Wednesday, ending a weeklong standoff that had threatened to spill over into broader violence. The raid caught the settlers off guard. Only a day earlier, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had moved to block the eviction order. Settler supporters in Netanyahu's hard-line government condemned the surprise raid, a key political ally threatened to quit the coalition, and settler leaders vowed retaliation.

The windows smashed by young Arabs angry at the publication of caricatures of the Muslim prophet Muhammad were quickly replaced last week at the fortresslike offices of the Temporary International Presence in Hebron. Still broken is the fragile relationship between local residents and the decade-old, pan-European observer mission made up of Danish, Swedish, Swiss, Italian, Turkish and Norwegian volunteers. Most of the time, TIPH's work in this divided city - which is under Israeli occupation - has its employees advocating for the local Arab population.

Palestinian gunmen ambushed Jewish settlers in the biblical city of Hebron last night, killing at least 12 Israelis and wounding 15, as they walked from a shrine in a trademark Sabbath ritual. Security sources said the nighttime attack appeared to be well-planned. Initial reports said the dead included soldiers who went to rescue the religious Jews as they walked along "worshipers' lane" toward the Jewish Quarter, a heavily armed compound where about 400 Israelis live in the city of 130,000 Arabs.

The Israeli military said yesterday that it could remain in Hebron for several days to search for an estimated 300 suspected Islamic terrorists, despite U.S. opposition to the incursion, which killed nine Palestinians and wounded about 20. The latest disagreement over Israeli military activity came as British intelligence officials met with Palestinians in Ramallah to work out details of a U.S. proposal to end Israel's monthlong siege of Palestinian...

Jewish settlers in this most combustible of West Bank cities have been torching Palestinian property and attacking Israeli police, adding a dangerous new element to the violence convulsing the region. Hebron is one of the most volatile cities in the region, the scene of nightly shoot-outs between Palestinian militiamen and the Israeli army. The settlers started rampaging through Hebron on Monday, after a 10-month-old baby was shot dead by a Palestinian sniper, and the violence has escalated through the week.

Samieh Moutasib, a 27-year-old shopkeeper, lives in a nice house shoehorned into a hillside overlooking downtown Hebron, but getting there requires the agility of a goat. Apologizing to visitors he has invited to his home, Moutasib cuts through a schoolyard and scrambles up a steep dirt path. He steps carefully across a narrow ravine bridged by the door of a chicken coop and edges sideways along a narrow ridge hugging the hillside. Then, he climbs a homemade ladder that has been built into the cliff leading up to his backyard.

The signs of tension are everywhere here: A tall, chain-link fence, studded with trapped stones, separates Jews and Arabs across a narrow street. Knots of Israeli soldiers in battle gear collect marbles that were fired at them with slingshots. Concrete barriers are set up like a slalom course, forcing drivers to slow for security inspections. Large black letters proclaim near an alley of vegetable stands: "This market was built on Jewish property, stolen by Arabs, after the 1929 massacre.

The post-minicamp roster tune-up could bring a familiar name back to Philadelphia. Vaughn Hebron, the former Eagle and Denver Bronco, is one of the players the Eagles are considering signing to add depth at running back. Hebron, 28, spent the last three seasons with Denver, earning two Super Bowl rings, after being released by the Eagles in 1996. The Eagles released the veteran Charlie Garner last week, leaving them without a proven backup to Duce Staley. Garner may sign with the Oakland Raiders, where he would be reunited with former Eagles offensive coordinator Jon Gruden.